May 18 is Tamil Genocide Remembrance Day. Every year, on this day, we remember the Tamil people who have died since 1948 because of the genocide committed against the Tamil people by the Sri Lankan state, including the massacre in Mullivaikkal, Sri Lanka, in May 2009.
This January, we are celebrating the Tamil Heritage Month in Canada. It is a special time to commemorate and value the significant contributions of Canadians of Tamil origin to our country. Tamil Canadians have positively impacted Canada's cultural, economic, social, and political landscape.
January is Tamil Heritage Month. It is a time to recognize the tremendous contribution of Tamil Canadians to our nation’s social, economic, political, and cultural fabric. It’s also a time to learn about and embrace the Tamil culture.
January is more than just the first month of the year, it is also Tamil Heritage Month, a time to recognize and celebrate the many contributions that Canadians of Tamil descent have made to the growth and prosperity of this country.
Every year, on May 18, thousands of Tamil-Canadians commemorate the Mullivaikkal Massacre, the mass killing of tens of thousands of Sri Lankan Tamils in 2009 during the closing days of the civil war.
This year’s Tamil Heritage Month theme is “Our histories. Our legacies. Our homelands.” This month is an opportunity to recognize the tremendous contribution of Tamil Canadians to our nation’s social, economic, political and cultural fabric.
We celebrate Tamil heritage each January, as the federal government expressed it, “to recognize the contributions that Tamil-Canadians have made to Canadian society, the richness of the Tamil language and culture and the importance of educating and reflecting upon Tamil heritage for future generations.”
We celebrate Tamil heritage each January, as the federal government expressed it, “to recognize the contributions that Tamil-Canadians have made to Canadian society, the richness of the Tamil language and culture, and the importance of educating and reflecting upon Tamil heritage for future generations.”
On October 5, 2016, the House of Commons declared the month of January as Tamil Heritage month, by unanimous motion. From a population of fewer than 150 Tamils in 1983, it has become one of the largest communities within the Greater Toronto Area. Our country’s Tamil population is thought to constitute the largest Sri Lankan diaspora in the world.
Support Postal Banking - Download and Sign the Petition
Canada needs a postal bank. Thousands of rural towns and villages in our country do not have a bank, but many of them have a post office that could provide financial services. As well, nearly two million Canadians desperately need an alternative to payday lenders. A postal bank could be that alternative. Download and sign the petition urging the Government of Canada to instruct Canada Post to add postal banking, with a mandate for financial inclusion.
Unfortunately, our scheduled meetings for Friday, August 15th and Monday, August 18th, have been postponed. The Federal mediators will not be able to assist CUPW and CPC due to their current involvement in the Air Canada negotiations.
This September, CUPW joins its Malayali brothers and sisters with joy and pride to observe Onam celebrations in Canada. Onam is one of the most significant regional festivals celebrated in Kerala, the southernmost state of India.
After pressing the Employer to come back to the bargaining table early last week, we received a response from Canada Post CEO Doug Ettinger on Friday evening, just hours after we posted Bulletin 128, “CUPW is Waiting for Canada Post.” In his letter, Mr. Ettinger stuck to the lines we’ve heard from Canada Post for many months now.
A week ago, CUPW members spoke loudly and rejected what Canada Post called its “best and final” offers. The goal of the Canadian Union of Postal Workers remains negotiating ratifiable collective agreements which meet postal workers’ needs, help grow the current services provided by a public post office and to better serve Canadians with new services.
Last week, postal workers decisively rejected Canada Post’s “best and final offers” in the government-forced vote. With a turnout of over 80%, nearly 70% of our members told Canada Post, “No, these offers won’t do it!”
Every employer in the Federal and Provincial sector has been watching us. Rejecting these offers was a victory not only for our Union, but for the labour movement as a whole.
To all CUPW members,
Thank you for showing up, for standing together, and for participating in the government forced vote. Regardless of how you voted, your participation was an act of solidarity and strength. And for those who voted to reject the final offers, your decision sent a powerful message: “We know our worth, and we deserve better”.
After almost two weeks of voting, the results are now in: CUPW members in both bargaining units have spoken, and they have rejected Canada Post’s global offers.
We’ve now entered the second and final week of the government-imposed forced vote on Canada Post’s “final” offers. As of July 28, 69 % of Urban members and 71.4 % of RSMC members have already casted their vote. Voting continues until 5 pm EST on August 1.
On March 24, 2021, the House of Commons voted to designate August 1st as Emancipation Day to commemorate the slavery abolition act of 1833, which took effect in 1834 and paved the way for the liberation of over 800,000 enslaved Black people across the “British Empire”, including parts of the Caribbean, Africa, South America and Canada.
On July 23, Canada Post shared some information about its “final” offers and the vote that is currently underway with members. Information was shared via email as well as distributed in some workplaces.